Chapter 99: The Great Bear of the North 4
TL/Editor: Raei
Schedule: 5/Week Wed-Sun
Illustrations: Posted in discord.
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Although I learned about the hidden circumstances of Kaiden, the cross-dressing Sword Princess, it had nothing to do with the side quest.
"So, that man really just came to see his daughter? There's no change in the quest window at all. Does this mean we need to roam the forest again tomorrow, reach 100% completion, then return to the city as if nothing happened? Really?"
-Maybe there's a hidden boss?
-Look for a cliff, you might have to jump off one
-Why would there be a cliff in a forest, you blockheads, haha
-I bet there's a hidden dungeon in a cave somewhere. Find it quick.
-Maybe it's just an introduction quest? Introducing you to nobility?
I sigh heavily as I look at the unchanged quest log.
As if the already outrageous story of the Northern Duke wasn't enough, the viewers started spinning all sorts of theories.
After all, the first side quest to appear after conquering the 20th floor of the tower wasn't all that exciting.
After clearing the 10th floor, Grace's character quest unfolded, presenting us with the cruel possibility of losing her.
But after clearing the 20th floor, we just stroll around the forest for two days and that's it?
Various theories sprouted, as they thought that such a thing couldn't happen.
There could be a boss sleeping in the forest, an area hidden through an illusion, a quest where you eat a blessed fruit, and so on.
'With so many people, all sorts of nonsense comes out.'
The only plausible suggestions were that something like a hidden area or there might be hidden boss monsters that need to be found and dealt with to get additional rewards.
It's also entirely possible that fruits imbued with divine energy, similar to an elixir, could be prepared for players in the blessed forest.
As the exploration percentage increases, there might also be event monsters or one-time dungeons appearing.
Nonsense like finding a cliff to jump off, or finding a lake to throw a weapon into, was easily ignored by both Han Se-ah and the other viewers.
"Um, Roland? I'm thinking of making stew for dinner... Shall I make some for them too?"
While I was pretending to think while I scrolled through Han Se-ah's stream and the internet, Irene quietly descended from upstairs and asked.
Arthur was loitering outside, inconveniencing his soldiers.
His eldest daughter, Ann Wesley, hadn't returned since she left.
Only the two knights of the North remained in the guesthouse.
We had separate rooms on the 2nd floor, but there's only one dining room.
We could eat separately, but Irene, with her generous nature, seemed to consider serving them.
"Please, don't worry about preparing our meals. I believe the Duke will likely dine in the cafeteria with the soldiers."
"Oh, is that so?"
While Irene pondered over the meal preparation, two knights descended alongside the clanking of armor.
The Northern Duke, eating with his soldiers in the cafeteria, was an odd sight here.
While it might be common in the North for the Duke to share meals with his soldiers, it wasn't the same here.
The more I saw, the more pitiful the soldiers seemed.
Their tent was taken for a private conversation.
They had to patrol the guesthouse.
Now, they couldn't eat their meals in peace.
"What, is Roland back?"
The ones who came down after the knights were Han Se-ah and Grace.
It seems Kaiden intends to stay hidden in her room to avoid the Northern Duke and his party.
Previously, I would have seen her behavior as aloof.
However, after hearing all of Arthur's story, my perspective has changed.
She seemed more like a high school girl, hiding in her room to avoid trouble.
"So, you had a man-to-man talk with the Northern Duke, what did you talk about?"
"Did that reach that far?"
"He has such a loud voice, I heard him say it."
She not only 'heard' everything.
She also filmed it all with a camera.
Yet, she acted as if it was a coincidence.
However this time, she didn't stutter or avoid eye contact. Grace was drawn to Han Se-ah's sly question, her eyes shining with curiosity.
Well, it is hard not to be curious when you meet a Duke who is below only the royal family.
Especially when he behaves oddly and strangely latches onto your party.
"It's a matter tied to the nobility. I can't speak about it openly."
"Really? That's disappointing."
"Ah, I see"
Han Se-ah, who had filmed the conversation from beginning to end, claimed to be disappointed but there was no regret visible on her face.
She's excellent as a gamer and a streamer, but as an actress, she's close to zero.
Grace didn't notice Han Se-ah's awkwardness.
She sulked with her eyes downturned.
"Yeah, you can't really go around spilling the secrets of a ducal house. Let's go get ready to eat. Irene is already preparing stew in the kitchen."
"That's true. We can't gossip about the nobility. But why was your conversation only between men?"
After sending off the disappointed Grace to the kitchen, Han Se-ah went back upstairs to fetch Kaiden.
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Raei Translations
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As always, Irene's stew was delicious, and although everyone seemed curious about the secret tale of the Northern Duke, nobody asked directly.
It was common knowledge that the secrets of nobility were intriguing but not particularly beneficial to know.
After dinner, the Duke's party disappeared somewhere and didn't return to the guesthouse.
"Excuse me, Roland?"
"What is it?"
"No, it's nothing."
Only Kaiden was moping about, like a kid who had done something wrong and was hiding from their parents.
Excluding such trivial matters, the quest progressed smoothly.
The quest progress bar increased steadily as we walked through the blessed forest.
The vast clearing was devoid of hidden pieces, areas, or boss monsters of any sort.
"Wait, is this really going to end without anything happening? It's kind of unsettling... Are there any hidden secret places anywhere?"
-Are we just going to introduce the flame-attribute Northern sisters and that's it?
-It's a blessed forest, it'd be strange if there were monsters
-According to the setting, it offers equal blessings to all
-I don't think there will be any Orcs, there are no traces at all
-Day 2 of the walking simulator...
While the group was enjoying a leisurely walk through the warm forest, appreciating the scent of the wild grass and chirping birds, Han Se-ah was getting more anxious.
As a gamer, she was concerned about not finding any hidden storyline or bonus rewards in the quest.
Even Grace, who was unable to see the chat, could tell something was wrong.
Seeing Han Se-ah furrowing her brows and nervously biting her lip, she asked,
"Hanna, is there something wrong? Or something suspicious?"
"No, it's actually the opposite. It's unsettling because there's nothing suspicious or problematic at all."
"Oh, is that so? Well, days like these happen. Even if there are no orcs, we're still doing our job properly. Don't worry too much."
Grace gave a quick laugh in response to Han Se-ah's uneasy explanation.
She probably thought Han Se-ah was earnestly hoping for some action since they were getting paid.
But in reality, it was the instinct of a gamer to not want to miss out on anything.
As we pass through more clearings, the quest bar is nearly 80% filled.
The idea of something appearing at 50% turned out to be nothing but the bear-like Northern Duke, an unrelated human to the quest.
With all the chat mentioning hidden rewards and secret quests, one can't help but grow anxious.
'But is there really nothing here?'
Aside from Han Se-ah's anxious heart, the forest was incredibly peaceful.
Frankly, it's strange that there is nothing to be found even when a 4 Scout with an enhanced detection passive is searching the forest.
If it was impossible to find anything on a 20th-floor quest with a 4 character, it meant the quest was solely designed for 5 characters.
A beginning quest that couldn't be cleared without a 5 character, specifically a scout or rogue, seemed too outrageous to be true.
They couldn't possibly have designed it like that.
"It seems like there's really nothing in the forest. It's truly a forest blessed by the Goddess."
"Right, the only things we've got are rabbits and squirrels."
The party members kept chatting, completely oblivious to Han Se-ah's growing impatience.
For them, unaware of the quest window, this request was simply nice and easy.
A privileged forest only accessible to the royalty and high nobles, a two-day stroll while basking in the divine energy it was a request where they are paid to relax.
It felt like they should be the ones paying for this experience, not the ones receiving payment.
Meanwhile, the percentage bar on the quest window slowly filled up.
It went from 80% to 85%.
Then from 90% to 95%.
"...This seems to be the final area."
"Really? We managed to cover everything faster than I thought."
The moment the bar hits 95%, an open clearing emerges before their eyes.
It was a peaceful place filled with wildflowers and fluttering butterflies.
There weren't even horned rabbits, let alone orcs. It looked completely safe.
"So there are really no Orcs here, huh?"
"Ah..."
Despite Han Se-ah's desperate hopes, the bar continued to fill.
96%
97%
98%
"Hmm? There's something strange in the middle of the field?"
99%
"It's not just a rock, it looks like a magic"
100%
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This content is taken from fr(e)ewebn(o)vel.𝓬𝓸𝓶